12:30 LRN Newscast

It’s the first of June, which also means it is the first day of hurricane season. Kace Kieschnick reports.

Cut 1 (33) “…I’m Kace Kieschnick.”

Tragedy in West Monroe, as two girls drowned in Ouachita River yesterday. They were among three who went swimming in the river yesterday evening. A boy was able to get out and call for help when the girls failed to resurface. Divers pulled the girls’ bodies from the water at around 7:30 yesterday evening.

One year after vetoing a similar bill, Governor Landry allows a bill to ban balloon releases to become law without his signature. Lieutenant Governor Billy Nungesser is grateful that Landry allowed Harahan Representative John Illg’s balloon release ban to become law this time around, saying it will save wildlife in the long run.

Cut 9 (06)  “…tangled in them.”

A great run by the U-L Lafayette baseball team has come to an end, as the Cajuns were eliminated in the NCAA regionals by Mississippi State last night, 19-5. The Cajuns relied on a deep and talented freshman class, who head coach Matt Deggs says only got better as the season went on.

Cut 7 (14) “…of season, man.”

11:40 LRN Sportscast

The UL-Lafayette baseball season came to an end last night after the Ragin’ Cajuns fell to Mississippi State 19-5. The depleted UL bullpen couldn’t keep up with the Bulldog batters who knocked 20 hits and nine runs in the final three innings. Cajuns head coach Matt Deggs didn’t make excuses after playing 11 games in 13 days.

Cut 16 (17) “…there yet.”

Mississippi State will advance to the Athens Super Regional against Georgia, the No. 3 national seed.

LSU scheduled a visit with the second-ranked safety prospect in Louisiana’s 2027 class, Jayden Anding. The Ruston High School four-star is ranked tenth in the state and is the brother of current Tiger cornerback Aidan Anding.

The final games of the NCAA Regionals will get underway this afternoon and this evening. St. John’s and Florida State are facing off in the first of two possible regional finals today at noon thanks to delays in the Tallahassee Regional over the weekend. The rest will be winner-take-all Regional finals. Oklahoma takes on 2nd-ranked Georgia Tech at 3:00. At 6, Auburn will have a third run at Milwaukee, Florida will look to bounce back against Troy and Kentucky and West Virginia will face off in Morgantown. The final game of the night is between 19th-ranked USC and tenth-ranked Texas A&M at 9 p.m.

The LSU Track and Field team advanced 11 tickets in both the men’s and women’s fields to the track and field championships in Eugene, Oregon, next week. The men are headlined by a trio of Malachi Austin, Grant Buckmiller and Amal Glasgow, who all qualified in the 400 meter. The Tiger Women also advanced a trio of sprinters in Tima Godbless, Athaleyha Hinckson and Shawnti Jackson in the 100-meter. Jackson will also run in the 200-meter.

11:30 LRN Newscast

Today marks the official beginning of the 2026 hurricane season. LSU Health Climatologist Barry Keim says NOAA is predicting a below average season, with eight to 14 named storms. Keim says says El Niño conditions will result in fewer storms this year.

Cut 29 (05) “…from really blossoming.”

Just because NOAA and Colorado State researchers are forecasting a quieter season that doesn’t mean we should let our guard down, so says Mike Steele with the Governor’s Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness…

Cut 5 (13) “….and your property”

Steele says a great resource is the Get A Game Plan website and app.

 

Today is the final day of the legislative session and the major piece of legislation that made it to the governor’s desk was a bill that reduced the number of majority-Black Congressional districts from two to one. Melinda Deslatte with the Public Affairs Research Council…

Cut 13 (11) “…map in 2024”

The so-called Five-one-map, meaning five Republicans likely representing the state’s six congressional districts will likely face a legal challenge.

Today, homeowners seeking a grant of up to ten thousand dollars to pay for a fortified roof can get register to be selected to receive the grant dollars. Three-thousand homeowners will be selected, and Insurance Commissioner Tim Temple says the eligible area has been expanded to include Acadia, Jefferson Davis and Lafayette parishes, as well as portions of eight other parishes previously excluded from the program.

Cut 12 (08) “…hurricane-force winds.”

For more information go to the Department of Insurance’s website.

10:30 LRN Newscast

The 2026 regular session ends today, and lawmakers must complete their work by six PM. They have already done their heavy lifting for the session, passing a new Congressional map that features five Republican districts and one Democratic district. The Republican led-Legislature’s decision to eliminate one of the Black majority districts upset Democrats and a lawsuit contesting the map will likely be filed.

Melinda Deslatte with the Public Affairs Research Council says  a fair congressional map is something that precisely no one at the Capitol can agree on, and the battle has actually been going on for many years, even before the 2022 drawing of the map that started the chain of events that has led us to this point.

Cut 15 (10) “…up in court.”

It remains to be seen what the map will look like for the November House elections.

 

Today is day one of Hurricane Season, and GOHSEP is ready. Spokesman Mike Steele says the agency has spent the last several months preparing for the 2026 hurricane season.

Cut 3 (11) “…the same page.”

Steele notes that due to changes with FEMA, there may be more that would need to be asked of first responders at the state and local levels. But he notes that those are things that they had already started doing.

Registration for a new round of fortified roof grants opens today. Insurance Commissioner Tim Temple says it opened at eight this morning.

Cut 10 (09) “…a potential grantee.”

This round of funding will be for three-thousand roofs, and Temple says history has shown that the number of people registering for the lottery will exceed that number several times over. For more information go the Department of Insurance’s website.

9:30 LRN Newscast

Today is the final day of the legislative session and this session will be remembered for the Congressional map that will give Republicans another seat in the U-S House as Louisiana will likely have five Republicans in their House delegation to one Democrat, instead of the current four-two split. Melinda Deslatte with the Public Affairs Research Council says now that the map has been signed into law, the next stop will very likely once again be the courts.

Cut 14 (08) “…this map stands.

Today is the first day of the hurricane season as forecasters are predicting a below average hurricane season. But as we all know, all it takes is one major storm to make it a bad season. LSU Health Climatologist Barry Keim says take the time now, to Test flashlights, batteries and generators, and make sure your family is on the same page in case of evacuation.

Cut 6 (07) “…just be prepared.”

 

Registration for a new round of fortified roof grants opens today. Joe Gallinaro reports.

Cut 3 (34) “…I’m Joe Gallinaro.”

A great season for the Ragin Cajuns ended last night with a 19 to five loss to Mississippi State, the number 14 overall seed in the NCAA Baseball Tournament. U-L Lafayette reached the Regional Finals by beating Cincinnati eight to six. The Cajuns finished with a 41-25 record.

8:30 AM LRN Newscast

Today is June first, which in Louisiana means the start of hurricane season. Experts say this year’s season has been forecasted to be below average, thanks to El Niño conditions.  And while there may be fewer storms, LSU Health Climatologist Barry Keim says we should all stay alert, because all it takes is one storm to ruin your year.

Cut 5 (09) “…relatively quiet season.”

Registration for a new round of fortified roof grants opens today. Insurance Commissioner Temple says this year, they’re focusing on areas within a 130-mile-an-hour wind zone. Therefore, the eligible area is expanded to include Acadia, Jefferson Davis and Lafayette parishes, as well as portions of eight other parishes previously excluded from the program.

Cut 12 (08) “…hurricane-force winds.”

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Today’s the final day of the legislative session  as Louisiana lawmakers will be in an all-out game of Beat The Clock to get those last-minute bills onto Governor Landry’s desk. While this year’s session will be remembered for the congressional map redistricting that lawmakers suddenly became tasked with near the end of the session, Barry Erwin, the chief policy officer of Leaders for a Better Louisiana, says lawmakers did pass several bills aimed at strengthening Louisiana’s workforce.  And he says while most bills looking to make changes to the TOPS program went nowhere this year, the discussion isn’t over yet. discussion.

Cut 8 (08) “…study it further.”

Erwin says one surprising bill that ultimately became law is one that gives colleges and universities a great deal of flexibility to raise tuition.

Cut 9 (11)  “…of the legislature.”

7:30 AM LRN Newscast

Today is the last day of the 2026 legislative session. Andrew Greenstein reports.

Cut 2 (36) “…I’m Andrew Greenstein.”

Tragedy in Monroe over the weekend as two  female juveniles drowned in the Ouachita River.  West Monroe Police say they got the 911 call just before six last night.  Dive Teams from Monroe PD and the Ouachita Sheriff’s Office responded to assist in the search.  We’re told the bodies of both girls were recovered by less than two hours later.

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The start of June in Louisiana doesn’t just mean the beginning of summer; it’s also the start of hurricane season. LSU Health Climatologist Barry Keim says this year’s season has been forecasted to be below average, with a predicted total of eight to 14 named storms, thanks to El Niño conditions.

Cut 4 (05) “…from really blossoming.”

Registration for a new round of fortified roof grants opens today in Louisiana . This round of funding will be for three-thousand roofs, and Insurance Commissioner Tim Temple says history has shown that the number of people registering for the lottery will exceed that number several times over.

Cut 11 (09) “…we possibly can.”

Registration begins this morning at eight…and the three-thousand people who receive those grants will be selected at random on June 22nd.

6:45 LRN Sportscast

The Ragin Cajuns made it to the Regional Finals of the Starkville Regional but Mississippi State was just too tough in the end as the Bulldogs defeated UL Lafayette 19 to 5, ending the Cajuns’ season.

Mississippi State hit seven home runs as they advance to the Super Regionals. Sawyer Pruitt from Live Oak High School gave up three solo home runs and was chased in the second inning.

The Cajuns got to the Regional Finals by beating Cincinnati earlier in the day eight to six. Donovan LaSalle from Barbe high school homered twice in the win.

LSU football hosted several five-star recruits over the weekend, including receivers Easton Royal from Brother Martin and Xavier Sabb from New Jersey.

Five-star defensive lineman Jalen Brewster, who is widely considered the top prospect in the Class of 2027 and is committed to Texas Tech, was also on campus and a video went viral that showed Ed Orgeron doing a defensive line drill with him.

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Could former LSU star Odell Beckham Junior return to the New York Giants? The free agent will reportedly work out for his former team today. Beckham was drafted by the Giants in 2014 and played five seasons for New York. During that time he became an NFL superstar. The 33-year-old did not play last season after only catching nine passes for the Dolphins in 2024.

For the second straight year, the top overall seed in the NCAA Baseball Tournament failed to make it out of the Regional. This year it was UCLA, last year it was Vanderbilt.

Cal Poly is advancing to the Super Regionals from the Los Angeles Regional.

Little Rock, the only team to beat LSU last year in the NCAA Tournament, is the winner of the Hattiesburg Regional.

Also headed to the Super Regionals, Ole Miss, Alabama Texas and there will be a Super Regional Series between Georgia and Mississippi State.

6:30 AM LRN Newscast

Louisiana has a new congressional map.  After the Senate gave its final legislative passage of the new congressional map on Friday, the Public Affairs Research Council issued new commentary on the map that Governor Landry quickly signed into law. Research Director Melinda Deslatte says the new map essentially undoes the work of the legislature in 2024.

Cut 13 (11)  “…map in 2024.”

The 2026 legislative session comes to an end at six this evening, while this session will be remembered for the last minute congressional map redistricting lawmakers had to do, Barry Erwin, the chief policy officer of Leaders for a Better Louisiana, says it was a productive session, as lawmakers passed several bills aimed at strengthening Louisiana’s workforce.

Cut 7 (12) “…own legislation too.”

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It’s the first of June, which also means it is the first day of hurricane season. Kace Kieschnick reports.

Cut 1 (33) “…I’m Kace Kieschnick.”

Registration for a new round of fortified roof grants opens today. Insurance Commissioner Tim Temple says it opens at eight this morning.

Cut 10 (09) “…a potential grantee.”

The grants will be for ten-thousand dollars each, and the three-thousand people who end up receiving those grants will be selected at random on June 22nd.

Monday 6/1 LRN Legislative Report

After the Senate gave its final legislative passage of the new congressional map, the Public Affairs Research Council issued new commentary on the map that Governor Landry quickly signed into law. Research Director Melinda Deslatte says the new map essentially undoes the work of the legislature in 2024, when Landry called them into a special session just after taking office to redraw the map to comply with a judge’s order to create a second majority-Black district.

Cut 13 (11)  “…map in 2024.”

Deslatte says now that the map has been signed into law, the next stop will very likely once again be the courts.

Cut 14 (08) “…this map stands.”

The 2026 legislative session comes to an end at six this evening, and lawmakers will be in an all-out game of Beat The Clock to get those last-minute bills onto Governor Landry’s desk. While this year’s session will forever be remembered for the congressional map redistricting that lawmakers suddenly became tasked with in the latter part of the session, Barry Erwin, the chief policy officer of Leaders for a Better Louisiana, says it was actually quite productive. He says lawmakers passed several bills aimed at strengthening Louisiana’s workforce.

Cut 7 (12) “…own legislation too.”

Erwin says most bills seeking to make changes to the TOPS program went nowhere this year, but he says this is likely not the last of the discussion.

Cut 8 (08) “…study it further.”